Atlanta MARTA expansion: Projects that didn’t make the list

MARTA recently unveiled a transit expansion plan for Atlanta that includes 21 miles of light rail, 18 miles of bus rapid transit and other transit improvements. But the list of projects that didn’t make the cut is also extensive.

Among them: Two-thirds of the proposed Atlanta Beltline light rail network, a heavy rail extension along I-20 west and a bus rapid transit line along I-20 east.

The proposed plan is a staff recommendation for how to spend the proceeds of the half-penny sales tax approved by Atlanta voters in 2016. Voters saw a menu of possible projects - but not a final list - before they cast their ballots.

In the meantime, below is a list of projects the staff considered but did not recommend. The project descriptions and cost estimates are from MARTA. The cost estimates include only the local share of construction, operating and maintenance costs – the federal government is expected to pay half the tab.

Heavy rail

*I-20 West: Two miles of heavy rail service from H.E. Holmes Station to a new station at Martin Luther King Jr. Drive and I-285. $223.6 million.

*Beltline Loop - Northeast - Southeast Connector: Two miles of light rail service along the Atlanta Beltline corridor. $129.9 million.

*Beltline Loop – Northwest: Six miles of light rail transit service along the Atlanta Beltline corridor. $307.2 million.

*Beltline Loop – Southeast: Four miles of light rail service along the Atlanta Beltline corridor. $82.8 million.

*Beltline Loop - Southwest - Northwest Connector: Two miles of light rail service along the Atlanta Beltline corridor. $105.5 million.

*Capitol Avenue Line: Two miles of light rail service along Capitol Avenue/Hank Aaron Drive from Downtown Streetcar to Atlanta Beltline – Southeast. $155.7 million. This project is included as a bus rapid transit line in the staff recommendation.

*Crosstown Crescent Line: Six miles of light rail service along Joseph E Lowery Blvd./Ralph D Abernathy Blvd./Georgia Avenue between the Southeast and West Atlanta Beltline corridors. $398.8 million.

*Crosstown Midtown - North Ave Line: Four miles of light rail service along D.L. Hollowell Pkwy/North Avenue from Bankhead Station to Atlanta Beltline – Northeast. $265.3 million. This project is included as a bus rapid transit line in the staff recommendation.